Chicago Tax Preparer Caused Losses of $3 Million to the U.S. Treasury

WASHINGTON - A federal court in Chicago, Ill., has permanently barred Bertha
Steverson of Chicago from preparing federal income tax returns for others, the
Justice Department announced today. The court found that Steverson, the owner
of Berthaís Tax Service, prepared tax returns for customers that contained
deductions for fictitious expenses. The court found that Steverson has
prepared an estimated 1,224 returns since 2004 that have caused an estimated
loss to the U.S. Treasury of more than $3 million.

The courtís order requires Steverson to give the Justice Department a list of
her customersí names, addresses, e-mail addresses and Social Security numbers.
More information and a copy of the complaint are available at
http://www.usdoj.gov/tax/txdv07118.htm.

Since 2001 the Justice Department has obtained more than 235 injunctions to stop
the promotion of tax fraud schemes and the preparation of fraudulent returns.
More information about these cases is available on the Justice Department Web
site at http://www.usdoj.gov/tax/taxpress2007.htm. More information about the
Justice Departmentís Tax Division can be found at
http://www.usdoj.gov/tax/index.html.